1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a technology that that shares a content that is stored on a system among a plurality of users.
2. Description of the Related Art
A document management system is a known technology that involves connecting a device that is capable of reading document data, a server that manages the document data, and a PC or other client that uses the document data reading device and the server, via a network. In a case that a plurality of users are sharing the document data on such a document management system, there is also a method of setting an access authorization for each respective document data or folder, and granting an editing authorization for the document data only to a specified user. A server, which defines and manages a usage authorization of the document data, is known as a policy management server, which performs management of the distributed document in accordance with a policy, and assigns the policy that is issued via the server to the document. It is thus possible to offer a policy management system that controls access authorization to the document data, even after the document data has been distributed by the system.
Japanese Patent Laid Open No. 2003-099670 offers a system that contains a movable object for promotional display use, comprising a display unit adapted to displaying a received content, and a server that provides a digital content to the movable object. Consequently, the movable object sends information of a current position to the server, which adjudicates the information upon receipt, and selects and distributes the appropriate content.
According to Japanese Patent Laid Open No. 2003-345660, the content is distributed with information attached that contains a usage condition of the content to an index file of the content. A receiving device checks the information that denotes the attached usage condition when querying the index data. A system that facilitates a usage of the content in accordance with the usage condition is thus disclosed.
Typically, the system that assigns the policy that is issued via the policy management server to the document data, and distributes the document data, can only set one active policy for one file. Accordingly, it has not been possible to switch the applicable policy in response to the condition, for example, switching the policy within an intranet environment and an Internet environment.
It has also not been possible to set more than a single usage condition for the content upon distribution in the index file of the content, even within a distribution system that contains the usage condition of the content. Accordingly, it has not been possible to execute an access control in response to each respective condition, for example, changing a behavior in response to such a condition as whether the environment is an intranet environment, or an Internet environment.